In general, hens become mature enough to lay eggs around six months of age, though this varies by breed. The first eggs laid may have soft shells or abnormal shapes. Healthy hens are able to lay an egg about once a day, but may occasionally skip a day.
Yet another question we ran across in our research was “When do chickens usually start laying eggs?”.
Some chicken breeds are genetically able to lay eggs sooner than others. Parasite infestation by worms, mites, and lice often result in a delay of egg production. A couple extra ideas to examine: nutrition affects hens laying, stress, molting, the importance of water, summary, or access to nesting boxes.
Another frequent query is “When will my chicken start laying eggs?”.
The most common answer is, the breed of chicken that you choose will determine when and how many eggs you will receive over the lifetime of the chicken. Daylight has a huge impact on egg production. Good nutrition is key to good egg production. If hens do not have a safe comfortable place to lay their eggs you will see a drop in egg production.
How old should chickens be when they start laying eggs?
Five to seven months old is the minimum age chickens tend to start laying eggs. The time of year is also a factor in egg production. Like humans, hens are unable to produce if they don’t have a proper diet. Some extra things to take a look at are environment, many factors in egg production, or a final consideration we’ll discuss is their environment.
What time of year do chickens lay the most eggs?
Chickens need a certain amount of sunlight to lay eggs which usually correlates to certain times of the year, as in, Spring through Summer is usually their most productive time. Are you giving your hens a free choice calcium supplement such as oyster shells for them to eat, they need extra calcium to lay eggs with hard shells.